Tim Cook caught on wrong foot over Apple 'fake' cover in Gurgaon

New Delhi: When Tim Cook visited an Apple retail store on Friday at Galleria market in Gurgaon, he raised concern over a "counterfeit" accessory. Officials of Apple India and functionaries at the retail store went into a tizzy as Cook demanded an explanation right on the spot.

To relief of the India team and the supplier, the accessory - a turquoise-coloured iPhone cover - was found to be original. Cook thought it's fake as the colour and the different packaging is perhaps not sold in the US or some of the other markets.

Apple officials did not confirm the incident.

Since his arrival in India on Tuesday, Cook has been taking stock of the company's operations, while also taking a feel of the start-up culture, meeting app developers and getting a glimpse of the film industry. He also visited Kanpur to watch a T20 cricket match on Thursday.

On Friday, the Apple CEO met officials from Bharti Airtel, while also visiting the office of food aggregator start-up Zomato to meet founder Deepender Goyal and some staff. Cook had a meeting with Sunil Mittal of Bharti Airtel. Mittal's son Kavin, who runs the messaging app Hike, also met the Apple CEO and briefed him about his business.

Cook is set to meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday where he is expected to speak about the company's plans. An announcement regarding local manufacturing of iPhones in India, however, may not come immediately as Apple is still awaiting "maturing" of the market for premium devices.

Cook is bullish on Indian market and its underlying potential. He had a meeting with top distributors, including officials from Brightstar and Ingram, and took updates about demand.

The Apple CEO has already said that he sees India as the "next China" and feels that the country requires an even greater focus in the coming years. "He is particularly enthused over the growth of 4G networks in India as it would help unleash full potential of Apple devices," an official said.

Cook is believed to have also met officials from Apple's India team during the day at Gurgaon. He will also be visiting some retail stores on Saturday.

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